Leigh Blander - Marblehead Current

16 Nov

A stitch in time: Longtime Marblehead tailor retires at 96

Leigh Blander0 CommentsFashion, Life Style, Local History, Local News, Top Stories

Tailor Charles Katsoulakos is closing up shop after more than 55 years. CURRENT PHOTO / LEIGH BLANDER One of Marblehead’s longest-running businesses is closing next month, and its 96-year-old owner is retiring - reluctantly. “What am I going to do now?” asked Charles Katsoulakos, who opened his tailor shop more than 55 years ago. “Maybe I’ll sleep a little later.” Katsoulakos said he has served "hundreds and hundreds" of customers over the decades. He's seen dramatic swings in fashion, but doesn’t have a favorite style.…

11 Nov

9-1-1 dispatcher will honor veterans with holiday wreaths

Leigh Blander0 CommentsLocal News, Nonprofit corner, Public safety, Top Stories

Longtime Marblehead 9-1-1 dispatcher Teresa Collins is leading a campaign to place holiday wreaths on the graves of nearly 2,000 veterans at Waterside Cemetery. Collins is working with the nonprofit Wreaths Across America. So far, people have sponsored 200 wreaths. Each wreath costs $15. "The theme of this year's mission is to find a way to serve," Collins told the Marblehead Current. "What more can you ask of Americans than to find a way to serve their town or city or country... for people to…

10 Nov

New faces, new hopes for Marblehead faith leaders

Leigh Blander0 CommentsCommunity Resources, Local History, Local News, Nonprofit corner, Religion, Top Stories

There are many new faces among Marblehead’s faith leaders, with more coming in the next couple of years. Longtime Temple Emanu-El Rabbi David Meyer, who is the current head of the Marblehead Ministerial Association, spoke to Marblehead Current about all the changes and his hopes for the future. Rev. Jenna Crawford at UUCM Rabbi David Meyer with the MMA “It is a challenge to keep the energy of the interfaith community strong as people are just getting to know each other,” Meyer said. “Hopefully, all the…

09 Nov

New plaques honoring service in Vietnam, Korea to be dedicated on Veterans Day

Leigh Blander0 CommentsCulture, Local History, Local News, Municipal Matters, Nonprofit corner, Top Stories

This Veterans Day, two new plaques listing the names of men and women who lived in Marblehead and served in the military during the Korean and Vietnam Wars will be dedicated at the VFW at 321 West Shore Drive. It’s a personal project undertaken by local vet Jim Caswell and funded by the group Forever Marbleheaders. Veteran Jim Caswell stands by plaques honoring local vets at the Marblehead VFW PHOTO: Leigh Blander “They're really remarkable,” Caswell told Marblehead News, referring to the plaques. Caswell noticed…

09 Nov

New faces, new hopes for Marblehead faith leaders

Leigh Blander0 CommentsCommunity Resources, Local History, Local News, Nonprofit corner, Religion, Top Stories

There are many new faces among Marblehead’s faith leaders, with more coming in the next couple of years. Longtime Temple Emanu-El Rabbi David Meyer, who is the current head of the Marblehead Ministerial Association, spoke to Marblehead Current about all the changes and his hopes for the future. Rev. Jenna Crawford at UUCM Rabbi David Meyer with the MMA “It is a challenge to keep the energy of the interfaith community strong as people are just getting to know each other,” Meyer said. “Hopefully, all the…

09 Nov

Marblehead Police ask for public’s help in animal cruelty investigation

Leigh Blander0 CommentsLocal News, Public safety, Top Stories

Marblehead Police have launched an animal cruelty investigation after a small dog was rescued near Maverick Street on Monday morning, Nov. 7. And they're asking for the public's help. Animal Control Officer Betsy Cruger with the rescued dog Two women were able to grab the pup after he was nearly hit by a car and ran off down the bike path. He was taken to a local vet. “Thanks to the work of Dr. Jeff Rockwell and his caring staff at Atlantic Veterinary Hospital of…

27 Oct

Marblehead architect creates latest Halloween installation: Egyptian cobra goddess

Leigh Blander1 CommentCulture, Entertainment, Local History, Local News, Top Stories

Tom Saltsman hard at work on his latest Halloween installation PHOTO: Leigh Blander Marblehead architect Tom Saltsman is at it again, creating a 20-foot-tall, mystical Halloween installation in his driveway at 32 Pleasant St. that is already drawing crowds from around Marblehead and beyond. Saltsman's subject this year is the ancient Egyptian goddess Meretseger, who has the head of a cobra and the body of a woman. Meretseger guarded and protected the Valley of the Kings, a burial ground for pharaohs on the west bank…

26 Oct

Marblehead native, activist Siskind returns to North Shore on eve of high-stakes election

Leigh Blander0 CommentsLocal News, Politics, Top Stories

Marblehead native and national political activist Amy Siskind is coming back to the North Shore to speak at the Women’s Fund of Essex County annual luncheon on Nov. 3. The event is just five days before the midterm elections, and Siskind is feeling anxious. Amy Siskind Courtesy photo “A national ban on abortion and losing gay marriage, gay rights, contraception – these are the things I worry about as a Democrat,” Siskind told Marblehead News. “This election could determine whether we’re going to end up…

20 Oct

‘The planet is on fire.’ Learn about Marblehead’s sole net-negative home

Leigh Blander0 CommentsCommunity Resources, Environment, Life Style, Local News, Municipal Matters, Science, Top Stories

Lisa Wolf outside her net negative home PHOTO: Leigh Blander Walk past Lisa and Steve Wolf’s home on Pitman Road and you might notice a peace sign, four feet in diameter and outlined in lights, on the front slope of their roof. What’s harder to notice, surprisingly, are the 44 solar panels lining the roof’s southeast side. The panels deliver enough power to make the home the only net-negative residence in town, according to the Wolfs. Net negative means the Wolfs produce more electricity than…

17 Oct

Lasting lessons: Forever Marbleheaders’ project to remember hundreds of MHS teachers

Leigh Blander3 CommentsLocal History, Local News, Marblehead Public Schools, Top Stories

If you attended Marblehead High School, you may have wondered what ever happened to some of your favorite — and not so favorite — teachers. The group Forever Marbleheaders has launched a campaign spotlighting educators at Marblehead High from 1950 to 1980. It's getting a lot of attention. Members of Forever Marbleheaders, from left, Marge Gallo Armstrong, Dan Dixey, Bill Goodwin and Maureen Graves Anderson. “People are having fun participating,” said Maureen Graves Anderson, a 1980 MHS graduate who is leading the MHS Teachers Project,…